Sparks Are Flyin'
Written By: Dan AbnettArt By: Brett Booth, Norm Rapmund, Andrew Dalhouse, Carlos M. Mangual
Cover Price: $2.99
Release Date: June 15, 2016
*Non Spoilers and Score At The Bottom*
Goddamn does it feel like we need this series to kick some major ass after all the nonsense we've had with Teen Titans over the past....... well, in many people's minds since the New 52 started..... so we're talking some serious time that Teen Titans has been lackluster and personally I'm looking for some kind of deeper explanation about everything that went down in Titans Hunt because I feel that I'm putting a lot of the pieces together to try and have them make sense, whether those pieces are actually there or not. So yeah, all of us Titans fans, whether they be teens or not at this point...... We need a win and hopefully this series is going to be the one to give it to us. So yeah, we've gotten our Titans to come together after the events of Titans Hunt and now Wally West has made his way out of the Speed Force and wants to see what his best friends are up to so hopefully they can help him put right what once went wrong with the Universe........ not quite Quantum Leap style, but I'll go with it. Let's jump into this Rebirth issue and see if the Titans remember Wally or if he's simply showing up to get his ass beat. Let's check it out.
Explain It!:
Our Titans Rebirth issue begins with Wally showing back up to what I'm assuming is some sort of apartment that the Titans once had because we see photos of our heroes..... sans Wally of course because this Universe doesn't recognize his existence at this point and I don't know what our Titans have been doing since they came together at the end of Titans Hunt or if a lot of time has even passed since then because it seems that the rest of our heroes turn up at this apartment for the first time along with Wally's arrival. So yeah, while Wally's snooping around having himself some fond memories of things that kind of happened....... since Wally and ten years of time were plucked out of existence, Dick Grayson in his blue and black Nightwing costume shows up and I know that we're getting back to the "Legacy" bit that DC is all about with Rebirth and nothing really says "Legacy" like this version of the Nightwing costume, but man did I love the black and red look. It just worked so much better for me with the rest of the Robins and the personas that they took up after their sidekick-ing years........ and if we want to get some legacy going on, let's pull out Dick's Deep V costume with the collar. Now that's some legacy right there. Of course, since Dick found some strange speedster in his team's old apartment, a fight ensues and apparently Wally has the touch.......... and by touch I mean, whenever someone touches Wally or when Wally touches someone else....... a spark is felt and seen and the person is immediately bombarded with memories of our former Kid Flash. It seems that whoever is behind this time stealing/plucking people out of the Universe can't hold a candle to this Flash's ear flicking powers.......... Yeah, we don't get any ear flicking going on, even though that would have been fun to get people back on the Wally West trolley. This issue really is members of the Titans show up, touch Wally and then remember him. Wash, Rinse, Repeat.
Even though this plot device seems really simple, I have to tell you that I had a great time reading it and seeing each member of the Titans realize who Wally is, while the rest of them try to scramble to figure what the hell is going on and whether or not this mysterious character to them is putting some kind of whammy on their friends. Each time someone gets their memories back, we see a little background that Wally and said person had in the past that solidified their friendship, like for Roy it was when he invited Wally over to his secret apartment that he had that not even Green Arrow knew about and the two teens had themselves some beer and hung out. For Donna, it was when Wally taught her to have a little fun through pranks and so on and so forth........ but it's really good. Hell, the way that Lilith remembers Wally is from the time that he was there for her and the two shared a kiss together...... and with Linda Park out of the picture since she doesn't seem to remember her former husband, I'm wondering if this relationship will pick back up as the series progresses...... but since it seems all that is needed is a touch, if I were Wally I'd say the hell with all my friends and speed over to Linda and touch the hell out of her.
In the end, we see the time that Dick Grayson and Wally stole the Batmobile, which is hilarious to me and when Wally made Garth truly feel apart of the surface world, but ultimately this ending is a bit of catch up for Rebirth, where Wally lays down everything that's been taken from them. Time, bonding moments and whatnot and how he thinks that now that they're beginning to remember again, that whoever is behind all of this is going to attack once more. It doesn't really matter in Wally's mind though because as we've seen in this issue and the way that our heroes came back together again in Titans Hunt, their friendship can overcome anything. As our issue closes we see how this friendship is actually changing the Universe because the picture that Wally originally looked at that didn't have him in it, now sports the speedster the way he remembered it.
That's it for this Rebirth issue of the Titans and even though it was really simple in that all it takes is a touch to get all the Titans back on the trolley and then having a recap of everything we learned in Rebirth, I have to say that I had a lot of fun in this issue with getting these characters to a more hopeful place than they've been for a lot of the New 52. Yeah, I didn't get all the answers I was hoping for from Titans Hunt, especially since it seems that Lilith being the one to make the Teen Titans forget about Mr. Twister and everything else doesn't seem to be the case anymore now that we have this whole Watchmen thing going on since Rebirth, but just seeing how happy all these characters were to see their friend that they forgot about got me feeling what they were feeling and reminded me how impactful it was when Barry remembered Wally in Rebirth. Another great thing about this issue is how awesome all the characters looked and how vibrant the colors were. The entire artistic team did an incredible job on this book and I'm not sure if Brett Booth, Norm Rapamund and Andrew Dalhouse are on this series from here on out....... Yeah, the solicits on DC's website say they are, but a lot of times you can't trust that, but goddamn I hope they are because I need to see more of what these artists are bringing to the party. Let's talk about Dan Abnett for a moment now that I gushed all over the artists. For having such a simple kind of story, I have to say that Abnett made up for it in spades with the emotion that he got across and even though I was a little on the fence with everything we got in Titans Hunt, I have to say that like the artists, I can't wait to see what else Dan is going to do with these characters.
Bits and Pieces:
This is a series that I couldn't wait to read once I found out that Rebirth was going to tuck it in its arms and cradle it like a baby........ that happened right? Anyway, I was all about this book and after reading this Rebirth issue, I still am and maybe even a little more excited for it now. We got a great looking book full of emotions that gets everyone reading it right up to speed with what's been going on with these characters and where we might be heading with an event down the line and even though it was a simple kind of story, it worked really well and I can't wait to see more of the Titans.
Explain It!:
Our Titans Rebirth issue begins with Wally showing back up to what I'm assuming is some sort of apartment that the Titans once had because we see photos of our heroes..... sans Wally of course because this Universe doesn't recognize his existence at this point and I don't know what our Titans have been doing since they came together at the end of Titans Hunt or if a lot of time has even passed since then because it seems that the rest of our heroes turn up at this apartment for the first time along with Wally's arrival. So yeah, while Wally's snooping around having himself some fond memories of things that kind of happened....... since Wally and ten years of time were plucked out of existence, Dick Grayson in his blue and black Nightwing costume shows up and I know that we're getting back to the "Legacy" bit that DC is all about with Rebirth and nothing really says "Legacy" like this version of the Nightwing costume, but man did I love the black and red look. It just worked so much better for me with the rest of the Robins and the personas that they took up after their sidekick-ing years........ and if we want to get some legacy going on, let's pull out Dick's Deep V costume with the collar. Now that's some legacy right there. Of course, since Dick found some strange speedster in his team's old apartment, a fight ensues and apparently Wally has the touch.......... and by touch I mean, whenever someone touches Wally or when Wally touches someone else....... a spark is felt and seen and the person is immediately bombarded with memories of our former Kid Flash. It seems that whoever is behind this time stealing/plucking people out of the Universe can't hold a candle to this Flash's ear flicking powers.......... Yeah, we don't get any ear flicking going on, even though that would have been fun to get people back on the Wally West trolley. This issue really is members of the Titans show up, touch Wally and then remember him. Wash, Rinse, Repeat.
Even though this plot device seems really simple, I have to tell you that I had a great time reading it and seeing each member of the Titans realize who Wally is, while the rest of them try to scramble to figure what the hell is going on and whether or not this mysterious character to them is putting some kind of whammy on their friends. Each time someone gets their memories back, we see a little background that Wally and said person had in the past that solidified their friendship, like for Roy it was when he invited Wally over to his secret apartment that he had that not even Green Arrow knew about and the two teens had themselves some beer and hung out. For Donna, it was when Wally taught her to have a little fun through pranks and so on and so forth........ but it's really good. Hell, the way that Lilith remembers Wally is from the time that he was there for her and the two shared a kiss together...... and with Linda Park out of the picture since she doesn't seem to remember her former husband, I'm wondering if this relationship will pick back up as the series progresses...... but since it seems all that is needed is a touch, if I were Wally I'd say the hell with all my friends and speed over to Linda and touch the hell out of her.
In the end, we see the time that Dick Grayson and Wally stole the Batmobile, which is hilarious to me and when Wally made Garth truly feel apart of the surface world, but ultimately this ending is a bit of catch up for Rebirth, where Wally lays down everything that's been taken from them. Time, bonding moments and whatnot and how he thinks that now that they're beginning to remember again, that whoever is behind all of this is going to attack once more. It doesn't really matter in Wally's mind though because as we've seen in this issue and the way that our heroes came back together again in Titans Hunt, their friendship can overcome anything. As our issue closes we see how this friendship is actually changing the Universe because the picture that Wally originally looked at that didn't have him in it, now sports the speedster the way he remembered it.
That's it for this Rebirth issue of the Titans and even though it was really simple in that all it takes is a touch to get all the Titans back on the trolley and then having a recap of everything we learned in Rebirth, I have to say that I had a lot of fun in this issue with getting these characters to a more hopeful place than they've been for a lot of the New 52. Yeah, I didn't get all the answers I was hoping for from Titans Hunt, especially since it seems that Lilith being the one to make the Teen Titans forget about Mr. Twister and everything else doesn't seem to be the case anymore now that we have this whole Watchmen thing going on since Rebirth, but just seeing how happy all these characters were to see their friend that they forgot about got me feeling what they were feeling and reminded me how impactful it was when Barry remembered Wally in Rebirth. Another great thing about this issue is how awesome all the characters looked and how vibrant the colors were. The entire artistic team did an incredible job on this book and I'm not sure if Brett Booth, Norm Rapamund and Andrew Dalhouse are on this series from here on out....... Yeah, the solicits on DC's website say they are, but a lot of times you can't trust that, but goddamn I hope they are because I need to see more of what these artists are bringing to the party. Let's talk about Dan Abnett for a moment now that I gushed all over the artists. For having such a simple kind of story, I have to say that Abnett made up for it in spades with the emotion that he got across and even though I was a little on the fence with everything we got in Titans Hunt, I have to say that like the artists, I can't wait to see what else Dan is going to do with these characters.
Bits and Pieces:
This is a series that I couldn't wait to read once I found out that Rebirth was going to tuck it in its arms and cradle it like a baby........ that happened right? Anyway, I was all about this book and after reading this Rebirth issue, I still am and maybe even a little more excited for it now. We got a great looking book full of emotions that gets everyone reading it right up to speed with what's been going on with these characters and where we might be heading with an event down the line and even though it was a simple kind of story, it worked really well and I can't wait to see more of the Titans.
8/10
I agree about nightwing the red and black just seemed to work for him but i did like everyone else's new look..well Lilith looked like green lantern 3000 but not bad, the issue itself made me feel like they shouldn't have put out titans hunt it was a book that didnt do much and left me confused over the lost memories besides all the rebith strikes agian i dont think i ever seen so many high scores in one week here lol
ReplyDeleteThis issue was great. It literally makes you see how bright the DC universe can be. Booths art is fu@king gorgeous, I hope he never leaves this book. My 2 criticism of the book are that Roy looks like a 90s kid, and that Wally is not from the Pre-flashpoint universe. That flashback never happened in the old continuity. Which makes me think that this Wally west is from the N52, but someone tampered with the new 52 timeline. So maybe we won't eventually see Wally and Linda's kids again, because when the flashpoint happen it erased there kids because Linda & Wally are younger. So Lois & Clark, are the only characters that are from before the the flashpoint.
ReplyDeleteStill a great issue, and criticisms could be explained over time. Can't wait for next issue.
8/10
The timeline is just one now. Since Wally was in the speed force he remembered before the 10 years was taken. Since his release the universe is making him remember only what happened in the new timeline. This was touched on in the rebirth one shot that the longer he's free from the speed force he will forget those 10 years too. Hope that helps man.
DeleteRoy's new look does make me think that he's sitting there eating Doritos and drinking Mountain Dew because those are the extreme snacks and if Roy's doing something, it's going to be EXTREME!
DeleteDamnit Eric, now I see Roy screaming EXTREMEEEEEE when he punches Wally in the jaw hahaha
DeleteHa ha, watch out X-Games, here comes Roy Harper!
DeleteThanks Jose, but man does that suck if your a fan of Jai West & Iris West. Eric your totally spot on with the Mountain Dew, but you foget to mention that it was "CODE RED MOUNTAIN DEW!"
DeleteHey, things were pretty extreme before Code Red came out and took us by delicious storm.
DeleteThe kids to me where a hit a miss thing. I HATED what Mark Waid did with them so I wasn't a big fan of them (all though in Flash Rebirth and the 12 issue series that followed, I didn't mind Iris becoming the new Impulse)
DeleteMmmm. As much as I would love to read this book I can't. DC Rebirth isn't doing it for me.
ReplyDeleteSurprisingly my biggest issue is Wally
DeleteI like most of what has come out so far...Titans was okay, but didn't have enough meat to it for me to be excited going forward.
Delete